When the Buddha was alive, seven clever sisters occurred to cross a cemetery. One among them, pointing to a lifeless physique, requested the others, “The corpse is right here. The place is the person?” One among them mentioned, “What? Why? Why?” All of them attained enlightenment upon listening to these phrases. Then, stunned to see them get enlightened, a heavenly God, spraying flowers, mentioned, “Oh, my superb sisters, what do you want? I will likely be keen to offer you no matter you want ceaselessly.” The sisters answered, “Now we have all the pieces we’d like. However if you wish to assist us, we hope to have three extra issues; one is a tree with out a root, one other is a patch of land with out gentle and shade, and the third is a valley that doesn’t make any echo even when we shout.” The heavenly God mentioned, “I’ve all the pieces wanted, however I don’t have the three stuff you talked about.” The sisters responded, “For those who don’t have this stuff, how will you save folks from their struggling?” The heavenly God went to the Buddha and requested him concerning the which means of this stuff. The Buddha answered, “Even my college students who’ve practised rather a lot don’t know the which means of this stuff. Solely Bodhisattvas can know the which means of them.”
Scholar: “How did they attain enlightenment after they heard a sister say, ‘What? Why? Why?’?”
Grasp: “She didn’t say any phrases and so they didn’t hear any phrases.”
Commentary:
Seeing and listening to are the supply of all calamities.
©Boo Ahm
All writing ©Boo Ahm. All photographs ©Simon Hathaway
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